JENNA

I stood up from the chair, picking my bag up as Aria's message rang in my head.

Who was Nick to Clara?

Why did her message sound like I just made the worst mistake of my life.

"Fuck", I cussed as I walked out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind me, leaving the stranger called Nick in the shower..

I walked into the club, the loud music blasting through my ear.

I fought my way through the crowd looking for where I could stand.

Maybe call or text the Aria.

Not like I would understand if I saw her.

I made my way to an hallway right beside the club, I was about to bring out my phone to call Aria when a voice made me jump.

"Clara", the voice said, tapping my back.

I looked beside me and I saw a young girl, almost like my age.

Petite...a perfect shape, her hair a mixture of black and pink sat right above her shoulder as her dark brown eyes stared back at me.

"I was just on my way to Nick's room", she said.

"Aria...she's Aria", I thought in my head.

"Don't tell me you actually did it.", she said, her voice a mixture of shock and amusement and her eyes low-key looked like she was judging me.

She had no unique scent....just cologne and humanity.

Just like Nick.

She was also human.

"All her friends are humans", I thought as Aria's small, strong hand wrapped around my wrist, pulling me out of the hallway towards the glowing bar

"Why are you surprised I had sex with him, isn't that suppose to be my shit to deal with", I answered her, my voice loud as I needed her to hear me above the loud music.

I really wasn't sure how Clara would act.

I didn't know what had happened between the two of them..

I was acting based on hunch and I hope it's right this time..

We walked to the drinking bar and we both took a sit, Aria flagged down the bartender with a flick of her fingers.

"Max, two martinis, dry", she said and he smiled.

"Good evening Clara", he said before turning.

So he knows me?

"A good one...huh", I replied back.

"Now, darling", Aria said, turning to look at me.

"I'm surprised because you told me, you and Jeremy finally talked your shit out and that you spent hours in the bathroom, making up with each other", she said smiling.

"Did you forget that fast?", She said.

"Uhh...Noo, Nick just happened in a flash", I answered her.

So she knew about Jeremy.

"You said you were going to turn him down, you swore you were done with the drama. That you were going to be committed." She leaned in, her lips close to my ear. Her breath was warm and smelled of mint and gin.

"So, seeing you flee to his room, the moment you walked into the bar....yeah I'm a little surprised."

"I got caught in the heat of the moment, it won't happen again", I said.

"It's always like that with Nick, Poor Jeremy", she said

"Maybe it was true for Clara this time, maybe she really was done with Nick", I thought.

I had managed to ruin that for her.

Max dropped the martinis on the table and I grabbed it instantly, chugging down the whole content, the liquid burning down my throat.

I needed it.

"So," I started, my voice steadier now, fueled by the alcohol.

"What's the plan for tonight? Anything... special going on?", I asked in the hope that she'll probably say what we're both doing in the club on a tuesday evening.

Aria sipped her drink, raising her eyebrow in confusion at the question I asked.

"Special? It's Tuesday. It's always special if you make it special."

"Right I know, it's a great meeting place", I said, hoping to get some words out of her.

"So remind me, my brain's a bit foggy", I said laughing, hoping she'll believe me.

"What are we doing in this goddamn club", I said, slurring my words..

She sets her glass down..

"What we're doing here, are you joking Clara?", She said.

"You can't tell me you're drunk, your alcohol tolerance is a bit higher than mine even though I hate to admit that", she said .

"And all of a sudden, your brain is foggy, you're freaking me out, you're acting like you're not you. Why are you asking so many weird questions?" Her gaze was intense, searching.

"Is this some post-Nick fuck breakdown?"

"No! No, I'm fine. Just... talk to me, I'm feeling a bit bored, tell me about anything", I said yawning, hoping she'll answer this time...

"Okay", I said, clapping my hands together like I just thought of the perfect thing..

"Bore me about the things we did the last we met, let's go down memory lane", I said.

She studied me for a long moment, then shrugged, a playful smile returning to her lips.

"Okay, weirdo, Last Saturday, the two brothers from Mexico, remember?, It was the most beautiful day ever, Her eyes beamed with happiness over with a memory that I didn't even remember.

At least, I was getting a hint about their relationship and it wasn't going well.

Do they go around fucking men?

"The younger brother with the tattoo... fuck, he knew exactly how to use his hands. I watched as he tied your hands to that pole, while he took his time watching you...ooh, lucky you", she trailed off while I felt a heat wave surge through me.

Was this the life I was about to live?

My own breath hitched as I grabbed the glass of alcohol that had been refilled, bringing it to my lips.

As I raised the glass, Aria's hands snapped out, wrapping around my wrist, stopping me from drinking.

"Ah, ah, ah," she said, collecting the glass and placing it back on the table.

"It's almost time to work. You know the rules. You can't get drunk. You have to be present for the audience."

Work?

Audience?

Inside the club?

I didn't know what to think.

"Ohh, don't give me that look, you've been doing it all day", she said.

"You didn't think we were waitresses, did you?", She said laughing.

"The private room is booked, darling. And Mr. Amato, as I have heard," she whispered, her voice a bit low, almost inaudible

"requested both of us, let's go buddy", she said, pulling me off the seat.

JENNA

I followed Aria as she led me through the bar to the hallway full of doors, silently hoping it's not what I think it is.

Do they go around fucking people?

We finally stopped in front of a door and she opened it and we entered.

I was taken aback by the changes in the light.

It had been red all long even in the bar and the hallway, but for some reason which I didn't seem to understand.

It was blue lights in this room.

The air was filled with the scent of cigars.

I could hear my heart beat loud in her chest.

I genuinely told it was going to fall off.

"What the fuck are we doing there again", I thought.

I didn't have my wolf senses, it was barely there.

The only thing I could do was different between a someone who was like me and a human.

I've been a werewolf long enough to know how we smell.

I looked around, trying to figure things out as Aria wasn't really helping.

That's when I saw it.

Them actually....Two men.

Insanely and impossibly handsome sitting on the couch just behind us.

Even with the blue lights, they looked like greek gods.

The room was a big one, with huge couch and poles.

Weird.

Aria and I walked closer and that's when I saw them closely enough.

They had no unique scent.

I was confused everyone in the bar were humans.

They liked at us, with a predatory look that felt more dominating than any shifter I'd ever known.

It gave me goosebumps.

One of the men, who had a dark hair and a striking jawline cleared his throat, gesturing with a lazy hands.

"Okay, girls...Strip"

The command hung in the air, clear and straightforward and I almost gasped in shock.

This can't be happening.

Strip for what?

I looked at Aria and without hesitation, she reached for her back, pulling down the zipper of her dress, letting the dress fall at her feet.

After that she pulled her all her underwear.

She stood there, naked under the blue light.

"The confidence", I muttered, looking at her.

She then turned to look at me, her eyes weren't the eyes of the Aria I just met.

They were the eyes of a woman who knew what she was doing and who also didn't find it weird.

"Is this what they do", I thought.

"Get your mind in the game, Clara," she said, her voice low and steady.

"Clara. Right", I thought, jolting back to reality.

"You're Clara, Jenna and unfortunately you have to do this", I muttered under my breath which was barely audible.

"It's them. The ones we've been wanting for a while. We finally got them", I heard her say.

I took a deep breath as my fingers found the zip of my cloth as I pulled it down, shivering from the cold whispers against my skin, after I was done with my dress, I striped out of my underwear, standing fully naked.

I felt exposed, vulnerable under the intense gaze of two strangers.

"Grab the pole, Clara...we don't have time," Aria commanded, moving forward to one of the poles anchored to the ceiling.

"It's showtime", she added.

"Pole... Fuck", I muttered.

I can't dance... infact I hated it.

I looked at Aria and I walked forward to the pole, the men's gaze were already boring into my naked skin.

I knew I had to do something.

I grabbed the pole just as Aria did and as she began to move in hypnotic series of twists and spins, my body didn't send to remember.

I held on to the pole, then I took a step, looking at Aria and doing exactly what she was doing.

I hooked my legs around the pole and I let my body fall into a spin.

A gasp escaped my lips as I did, I arched my body, my hips circling the pole like it was my lover.

It didn't feel new.

"Was it Clara's body? Or have I always been a great pole dancer?", I thought as I danced.

As the slow music continued, I no longer cared if the looked, instead I was lost in my own fantasy, twirling and rolling on the pole that it was my life.

I lost myself in it.

After what felt like both an instant and an eternity, the both stood up and the dark-haired one that told us to strip walked to Aria while the other one with the blonde hair walked closer to me.

I kept moving, swapping and rolling on the pole as he stepped into my circle.

His first touch sent electric shocks through me. It wasn't a grab or a grope but rather a caress.

His knuckles grazed up the outside of my thighs, a deliberate stroke that almost made me scream. His other hands followed the curves of my waste, rubbing it softly while I didn't stop.

Instead I arched to his touch.

His hands trailed up to my spine and I stopped dancing, my breaths ragged as I rested against his solid chest

He didn't move, instead he whispered info my ears.

"You dance so well", he whispered, his breath warm against my ear.

His hands slid to my front, his palms on her stomach before moving higher until his thumb brushed my breast, flickering my nipple against his fingers.

I could hear Aria's soft, breathy moans mixing with mine. I glanced at her for a moment and I saw that the other man had her pressed against her pole, his mouth on her neck as his hands explored her with the same intensity.

The room was filled with our moans and the occasional whisper of praises from the men.

His hands finally cupped my breasts fully, his thumbs circling my nipples, drawing them into tight, aching peaks. A sharp and undeniable pleasure shot through me, straight to my core.

I ground my hips back against him, feeling his hard erection pressed against the cleft of my ass. A deep grunt escaped him while I did that and one of his hands slid down past my stomach down to my core which was pretty much dripping already.

"Oh, fuck", I cussed as my head fell back onto his shoulder as his fingers circled round my clit, rubbing so skillfully, then his fingers plunged into me and I moaned.

He worked me in time with my movements, his own hips gently thrusting against me. The pleasure built to a high pitch, moving me to the edge more and more

And the suddenly he stopped

He withdrew his touch, leaving me cold and achingly empty. The two men stepped back, their expressions unreadable.

A ragged silence fell, broken only by the sound of our panting.

They clapped. Slow, deliberate applause.

The dark-haired man smiled, a flash of white under the blue lights

"It was a wonderful night, girls."

"I hope it gets better from here," the blond one added, his dark eyes lingering on me for a heartbeat longer before they turned and left, the door swinging shut behind them.

It felt like the spell surrounding me was broken as my legs gave out and I slid to the floor, my body aching with exhaustion and unspent release.

My muscles ached.

I just wanted to lay down a bit.

I looked at Aria and I saw that she was already pulling her dress on, grinning from ear to ear with satisfaction.

Suddenly my phone buzzed, then hers. I fumbled for it and when I brought it out of my clothes. The screen lit up with an alert.

My eyes grew wide at the number of zeros that followed the deposit. It was more money than I'd ever seen in my whole life.

"Who sent me this?", I wanted to ask when I heard Aria's low laugh, which was almost like a chuckle.

"I guess they did enjoy the night."

I just stared, numb.

The money was from them?

Why?

Clara was the Alpha's daughter. She had everything.

Most likely everything she wanted.

What was she doing performing, dancing, for human men in a private room for... for this?

I just didn't understand why she lived her life like that.

Aria went on rambling about one birthday party which I really didn't listen to the details, her words were barely registering.

I just wanted to leave as my body ached.

Like my mind, body and soul just wanted out.

"Nick had to leave early, he says he'll see you at the party", she said and I nodded, having no idea of who's party it was and where it was going to take place.

The real Clara probably knew what the party was for and the location.

But I really didn't care.

I could probably ditch it anyways.

I need to look for a way to reach Mia.

Even if it costs me leaving the pack to pay a visit to her new pack.

I would.

I walked out of the bar, the ache in my body giving me a constant reminder of how the night had been.

It was barely morning.

I had spent the whole night outside and I wondered if it was a problem.

It looked like her normal routine anyways.

Back at home, I couldn't even do it.

If I had a day out with Damon, my grandmother would make me promise I would be home before 12.

The drive home felt like eternity and when I got home, I walked to my room, hopefully no one challenged me.

I could see guards talking, they recognized me so I knew they weren't going to stop me.

They should not be able to.

When I got to my room, my lights was off.

Which was a bit weird.

I wasn't a fan of total darkness so I made sure I didn't switch off my lights when I left.

The moment I entered, i dipped my hands in my bag to bring out to phone so I could figure out the switch.

Not like i was used to the settings of the room.

Click.

The light switch flicked on.

I froze, my blood running cold.

Slowly, I looked around the room and on the armchair in the corner of the room, there sat my mother.

No...Clara's mother.

Her eyes scanned me from head to toe, taking in my short gown, smudged makeup and my rough hair.

They weren't the same eyes that smiled at the dinning.

They held something else which I refused to believe.

Hatred.

"Where have you been, Clara?" Her voice was soft yet it sounded so deadly.

Like Venom.

My mind went blank. What could I say?

That I'd been rented out for a private show?

That strange, powerful men had paid a fortune to watch me dance and touch me until I almost came apart?

I opened my mouth to at least cook something up but I could do was choke even before I spoke.

She didn't let me try again. She didn't even raise her voice.

"Take her to the basement."

The door flew open before her words had even finished echoing in the room. Two large guards I hadn't even known were waiting there barged in, their faces stern and unyielding. Their hands closed around my arms.

"Wha... What Mother? What's happening?" I stammered, struggling against their iron grip.

"The basement? for what?"

Even the mother I had called her earlier didn't sit well with me.

Why would she tell them to take her daughter to the basement?

What happens in the basement?

She just watched, her expression not changing in the slightest, as they dragged me out of the room.